Vermont's population in 2000, according to the U.S. Bureau of the Census was 608,827. This is a 8.2 percent increase from the 1990 Census count of 562,758.

The largest segment of the population is the 35 to 44-year-old age group, and has been since 1991. The fastest growing segment of the population is the 35 to 59-year-old group, with a 24.4 percent increase since the 1990 Census. The under 5-year-old segment of Vermont's population is shrinking as a result of declining birth rates, showing a decrease of 17.6 percent since the 1990 Census.

The sex distribution of Vermonters has changed slightly since the 1990 Census, with males outnumbering females up to age 24, females slightly outnumbering males from age 25 to 64, and females outnumbering males by a widening margin as age increases after 65. The age-sex distribution of Vermont is illustrated in Figure 3.